


A Familiar Foe

by PageTurner29



Category: The Last Kingdom (TV)
Genre: Confrontation, Finan isn't going down without a fight, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-07
Updated: 2020-08-07
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:42:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25769881
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PageTurner29/pseuds/PageTurner29
Summary: Taking place during Season 3, episode 8. Finan decides to confront Skade.“Uhtred and I are bound,” you growl. “He would not abandon me.”Taking another step forward, Skade gives you a false sympathetic smile. “You are bound to his past.  Uhtred is destined for greatness, I have seen it. Like an anchor you drag him backwards. You do not share in his future.”
Kudos: 10





	A Familiar Foe

It is late in the day as you wait for her. Shadows stretch long down the hallway - dark fingers reaching for the unsuspecting guests of the dining hall. It is chilly here, away from the fire, so you pull your wool cloak tighter around you, even as you sink back further into the doorway of her room. 

You are not entirely sure what you’re doing here. You cannot kill her - not yet, anyways. Still, your hand flexes over the pommel of your sword - itching to put steel through her heart and have this be done with. If nothing else, you need her to know that you will not be swayed to her whims as every other man seems to be. You need her to know that you will fight for Uhtred - even when he does not fight for himself. 

Movement catches your eye and you can see her at the end of the corridor, walking towards you. She moves without care or concern, completely assured of her safety within these walls. This alone makes your stomach turn, and you inhale deeply to calm yourself before whatever comes next. 

You step out of the shadows when she is still about 10 paces away. Skade halts as soon as she sees you, tilting her head to the side as a bemused smile creeps across her face. Never before has a woman’s face made your skin crawl as much as this one’s does. 

“Finan,” she nearly purrs. She clasps her hands in front of her and, head still cocked to the side, waits for you to state your business. She has been waiting for this, you realize, and she is relishing the confrontation.

“You cannot have him.” you say coolly and evenly. 

She laughs, “Uhtred is already mine!” Taking two steps closer to you she hisses, “He gave himself to me.”

“You have cursed him and poisoned his mind,” you spit back. “No man willingly gives himself to a venomous snake!”

“How does it feel to be replaced?” she asks innocently, although her words drip with malice.

“I have not been,” you reply, with a touch more confidence than you feel. 

“Are you sure?” she taunts. “In Dunholm, he nearly chose the Danes over your Saxon friends. He did not trust you enough to tell you about Sihtric’s deception. When we returned here to Coccham, it was Sihtric, a Dane, who spoke for Uhtred against the guards outside the hall, not you. When I cut that cross from the ceiling, according to my Lord's wishes, it was you who picked it up and clutched at it like a child. And now he sends you away to Winchester to babysit the Christians. He cannot have you in his way for what he must do next. You are like a waterskin plagued by cracks to him - useless and ready to be thrown in the fire.” 

Your heart aches in your chest at her words, and you hate both yourself and her for it. You can feel the doubt worming its way into your skull.

“Uhtred and I are bound,” you growl. “He would not abandon me or what we have spent so many years fighting for.”

Taking another step forward, Skade gives you a false sympathetic smile. “You are bound to his past. Uhtred is destined for greatness, I have seen it. Like an anchor you drag him backwards. You do not share in his future.”

You feel the rage boil over in you. “I should kill you now and be done with it, “ you seethe. “Curse be damned. I don’t believe it anyways. Another lie that you spew to bring men to their knees, and I will not yield to it.” 

Your hand clasps the hilt of your sword and you begin to circle each other in the small corridor. Her defiant smile makes your pulse thud in your ears. 

“Then why did you fear he would die, not so long ago? How else did Uhtred the Dane Slayer succumb to me so quickly?” she taunts, clearly enjoying this. “I have power, Finan, and I will wield it to control Uhtred’s fate. He is mine!” she hisses.

And suddenly, the dark corridor fades away and time itself seems to stop. The smell of the salt air hits you first, stinging your nose and face. Your arms feel heavy with ache. For a moment, all you hear is the raging sea around you - the crash of waves against wood. Then you see him. Like a ghost, Sverri’s leering face moves in front Skade’s sneering one, the two of them blending together for a moment. You watch as his lips peel back and he utters the singular word that still haunts your dreams - “Pull!”

You blink and the vision is gone, but you can still feel it. You can still feel his presence, for Sverri and Skade are one in the same. Both mercilessly using men for their own gain, only to throw them away when they have served their purpose. 

You breathe and feel the fear and uncertainty that you felt moments ago slip away. You recognize the devil you are dealing with, and you know how to vanquish it.

Taking your silence for victory, Skade chuckles and continues her taunting, although she does not realize that it holds no power over you anymore, “He has chosen me, Finan. If he continues to choose me, will you follow him still?”

You meet and hold her gaze and you watch with satisfaction as her brow twitches, as you see a flicker of doubt creep into her own mind. 

“You abandon men when they no longer serve you,” you say cooly, “I will not abandon him.”

With that, you turn and walk away from her.

===

Uhtred finds you in the yard early the next morning. The bishops’ carts are loaded and they are ready to journey back to Winchester. 

“I will meet you in Winchester,” he says as he strokes your horse’s withers, “I want to see my children.”

You open your mouth to speak but then you feel her presence, and you both look up to see Skade enter the doorway of the hall and lean against its frame. Her pale face watching you carefully. 

“Lord,” you murmur to get his attention. He swings his gaze back to you and you continue to speak in a low voice so that what you are about to say will not carry to Skade’s ears. 

“You and I both know what it is to lose your freedom. Do not let anyone, man or woman, take it away from you again. Even under oath, you still hold more control over your own destiny than what she is promising you. No promise of power is worth the sacrifice she is asking.”

A shadow passes over Uhtred’s face, but it is not anger. 

“She is mine, Finan,” he says sternly and loud enough for Skade to hear. You watch as her lips curl into a satisfied smile. 

His words do not match the look in his eyes though. The Uhtred that you know and serve is there in those eyes, and he is begging for you to trust him. 

You sigh, and with a nod of your head you acknowledge not his words, but the man still staring at you from behind his gaze. You spur your horse forward and do not look back, leading the bishops and their carts of food and silver through the gates to Winchester. When you are out of his sight you make the sign of the cross and pray. You pray that the man you met on the slave ship finds the strength to break free once more.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. I'm rewatching Season 3 and this little interaction popped into my head when I should have been sleeping (as most of my writing does), and begged to be written down this morning.


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